Age and Growth Characteristics of Himri Barbel (Barbus luteus Heckel, 1843) in Orontes River, Turkey

In this study, the age and growth of Himri Barbel (Barbus luteus Heckel, 1843) were determined based on specimens collected from Orontes River-Turkey, during the period from February 2004 to January 2005. This population comprised 7 age groups of males and 9 of females. The male and female ratio was 1:1.26 (M:F). Total length-weight relationship was estimated as W = 0.0129TL2.986 for females, W = 0.0125TL^3.003 for males. Growth parameters of the von Bertalanffy equation were computed for females and males as: L∞= 38.77, W∞= 714.23, k = 0.300, t0 = -1.69 and L∞ = 40.32, W∞ = 819.35, k = 0.247, t0 = -1.58, respectively. Maximum observed age was 9, suggesting that the species is long-lived.